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(Lemoore, Calif.)- Columbia College-Lemoore will confer 17 associate and bachelor’s degrees upon students at a commencement ceremony at 2 p.m., Thursday, May 22, in the Station Theater on Naval Air Station Lemoore.

The ceremony will be a joint commencement for Columbia College-Lemoore, Chapman University, Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, West Hills College and Lemoore High School. Gary Oedewaldt, assistant dean for Adult Higher Education, will be conferring degrees. Robert Webb Owens, a Columbia College-Lemoore student and a member of the U.S. Marine Corps, will deliver the commencement address. Owens has earned two bachelor's degrees, a bachelor of arts and a bachelor of science degree, in human resource management in less than three years. He will graduate cum laude at the ceremony.

"Our graduates have succeeded in balancing their dedication to the country with their career goals," Oedewaldt said. "Graduation is the culmination of their efforts and the result of wanting to improve their lives. We are proud to honor their accomplishments."

Columbia College was founded in Missouri in 1851 as Christian Female College, the first women’s college west of the Mississippi River to be chartered by a state legislature. The college changed its name to Columbia College in 1970 when it became coeducational. Columbia College–Lemoore was founded in 2001 and today continues to serve military and working adult learners in the area.

Columbia College provides accredited, affordable degrees to working adults, including military students, and serves nearly 25,000 students worldwide.